Clarifications on the Apple TV 2 in Canada

The new Apple TV finally reached our hands yesterday, so we thought we’d see how the device stacks up against that of our US brethren down south. Whenever we get an update to a device that involves media and contract problems with studios, we usually see the fallout by the time a device makes its way to Canada.

So, if you’re a Canadian, and you’re thinking about picking up the new Apple TV, you’re going to want to pay attention to this next part.

There’s no TV Shows

The iTunes store in Canada has TV shows in it from some of the major companies, so it’s not that we don’t have access to television shows in iTunes in Canada already.

So, it was a pretty big surprise to us when we realized that the new Apple TV had omitted the entire TV Show section on the device. In the US, there’s Movies, TV Shows, Internet, Computers, and Settings as the major sections available on the Apple TV, but, in Canada, there’s everything but TV Shows. That’s a pretty big deal breaker for a lot of people, considering the original Apple TV would let you purchase televisions shows through the iTunes network. I wasn’t expecting rentals, but where did the purchases disappear to?

Netflix actually works

Everything I expected about the new Apple TV has been wrong. I assumed TV Shows would work, and that Netflix wouldn’t, but it’s the complete opposite. Netflix, just released in Canada this month, works fine on the Apple TV. You put in your Netflix account and password, and you’re off to the races. Everything available in the Canadian Netflix catalog seems to be available on the Apple TV. Having just opened up shop in Canada, the Netflix selection is pretty good all things considered, but if you plan on using it for Television episodes you might be a little disappointed in the current selection. But again, keep in mind that the service just launched in Canada, and that the library will continue to increase over time.

Once we spend some more time with the device, we’ll have a full review for you.